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Facebook has had some success purging fake and misleading pages, but it's evident there's still work to do. CNN has discovered that the most popular Black Lives Matter page for the past year was a scam -- it was supposedly fundraising for BLM causes in the US, but sent at least some money to Australian bank accounts and frequently linked to the websites from Ian Mackay, a workers' union official in Australia. It had nearly 700,000 followers where the real activist group's page has less than half that amount.

Fake Apple devices have been making the rounds for years, but it's rare that they have much sway in the US -- although it looks like one team of bootleggers had a surprising amount of success. Jianhua Li, a Chinese man living in the US on a student visa, has pleaded guilty to charges he trafficked in more than 40,000 counterfeit electronic devices from China between 2009 and 2014, including iPads and iPhones. All told, he received a whopping $1.1 million in payments -- no mean feat for several years of contraband. He wasn't alone in the plot, either, and the scheme was relatively elaborate.

What? A company has made a phone that borrows heavily from Apple's design? (And LG, Samsung while we're here.) At least the notch is real this time. Oukitel's U18 is up for preorder, priced at $160, making it the cheapest iPhone X that... isn't an iPhone X at all. But, you could get six of them for the price of a real one.

The hardware design is all over the place: look at that Samsung chin, or the LG-inspired button on the back. Meaning, for some reason, Oukitel's brought together all the things that I hate. However, it is backed it up with a 4,000mAh battery, at least. (It's the same company that debuted that insane 10,000mAH smartphone a way back.)

Xbox's retro-inspired Cuphead is on the App Store. There's just one problem: it's a fake. While the iTunes preview page looks legit, the game isn't actually an official project from designer Studio MDHR. A quick whois search reveals that the phoney website is hosted in Hungary and that registered owner, Sheridens LTD. has done this sort of thing before with an unofficial mobile port of melee brawler Gang Beasts. In fact, the fake Studio MDHR website was set up less than two months ago.

Attempts at art forgeries run from the laughable (remember Monkey Jesus?) to the exquisite (this ambiguous Baroque masterpiece nearly cost a gallery €120 million last year), and traditionally the art world has had to rely on expert knowledge and supporting documentation to weed out the real from the fake. But now researchers claim AI is able to identify forgeries simply by looking at the brushstrokes used to compose a piece.

We're only one week away from iPhone X pre-orders, but the counterfeit market is already offering a variety of similar-looking devices to a particular crowd. As I anticipated, I came across one such clone while wandering around Hong Kong's Global Sources electronics fair earlier today, courtesy of a Shenzhen company by the marvelous name of Hotwonder. Its Hotwav Symbol S3 (also not the best name) is essentially an entry-level 4G Android phone shamelessly packaged into an iPhone X-like body, except for one notable difference: the screen "bezel" is white instead of black.

The truth behind Facebook's involvement in Russian voter hacks continues to get more complicated. The social media company apparently knew about Russian meddling even before last year's US election. Mark Zuckerberg's company reported that 10 million people saw Russian political ads, and has handed over Russia-linked ads to Congress. According to a report in The Washington Post, however, Facebook recently scrubbed the internet of thousands of posts related to social media analyst Jonathan Albright's research that apparently concluded that at least twice as many people had seen the ads than Facebook reported.

We want our kids to use the internet, sure, but we want them to do it safely. No one wants young children to deal with inappropriate content, like fake Peppa Pig or Doc McStuffinsvideos. Unfortunately, it's increasingly difficult to police all of the various services and apps that our children use, including YouTube. A new study performed by researchers from the US, UK and Brazil analyzed YouTube videos from all three regions that had been viewed more than 37 billion times. They found that children are increasingly exposed to videos containing advertising and disturbing images that are indistinguishable from regular kids' programming. The study also found that children younger than the "allowed" ages around the globe are accessing YouTube, many through their parents' accounts.

Facebook has incorporated some technical changes to its website that make it easier to address one of its biggest problems: spam accounts. According to a blog post by Protect and Care Team manager Shabnam Shaik, the social network can now detect fake accounts more effectively, even ones that may look authentic. The company's upgraded systems identify inauthentic profiles by looking for patterns, such as repeatedly posting the same thing over and over or a sudden spike in messaging activity. Shaik says their systems can do those without looking at the actual contents of users' posts.

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culturefacebookfakefakeaccountsfakenewsinternetFri, 14 Apr 2017 10:22:00 -040021|22039589https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/17/full-fact-wants-to-automate-fact-checking-those-are-the-facts/https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/17/full-fact-wants-to-automate-fact-checking-those-are-the-facts/https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/17/full-fact-wants-to-automate-fact-checking-those-are-the-facts/#comments
"If we can't discriminate between serious arguments and propaganda, then we have problems." That's President Obama speaking to the threat of outright fake and inaccurate news. In an effort to combat this, and ensure that people are well-informed, UK charity Full Fact is trying to make fact checking fully automated. So far it's working on UK-focused stuff like what members of Parliament say during addresses, and claims made by trade groups in addition to print, online and broadcast media organizations, according to TechCrunch. But in the future, it plans to cross the Atlantic.

In the last week, Facebook's been battling the accusation that fake, often inflammatory stories showing up in users' Newsfeeds influenced how people voted in the presidential election. The social media giant vowed it is currently taking the issue seriously and is searching for an unspecified solution even as CEO Mark Zuckerberg personally defended Facebook, claiming that over 99% of stories on the network are authentic and that it was "extremely unlikely" that fake news impacted the election outcome. But within Facebook, a fierce debate has allegedly roiled since May about whether to install an update that curbs fake and hoax news -- but they didn't deploy it because stories from conservative news sources were disproportionately downgraded and removed from users' Newsfeeds.

Apple has filed a lawsuit against Mobile Star LLC for manufacturing fake Apple chargers and cables and passing them off on Amazon as authentic goods. According to the details of the lawsuit posted by Patently Apple, Cupertino bought and tested over 100 Lightning cables and chargers marked "Fulfilled by Amazon" over the past nine months. The result? Around 90 percent of the chargers were fake. Now, we all know there's an abundance of counterfeit Apple goods out there, but people tend to trust listings sold by Amazon itself. And in this case, Amazon clearly stated that the items were "original." Check out one example below the fold to see what we mean.

If you've ever shopped at Alibaba, you know to tread carefully: the online marketplace has long had a problem with merchants peddling counterfeit goods. It's given the site a bad reputation, creating tension between Alibaba and major brands. Today, the company announced a new program designed to smooth things out and help companies identify and remove fake products from Alibaba's marketplace.

If you use a contract factory in China to produce your goods, don't be surprised if high-quality fakes pop up online. That's the feeling of Alibaba founder and executive chairman Jack Ma, who stands accused of effectively endorsing counterfeit goods while speaking at an investor event. The Wall Street Journal quotes the executive as saying that "the fake products today are of better quality and better price than the real names." It's a big issue for Alibaba, since its consumer-facing retail portals have something of a reputation for being the place to go when you want a knock-off device.

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alibabaclonecounterfeitculturefakegoodsjackmakirfpersonal computingpersonalcomputingpiracypoliticsWed, 15 Jun 2016 13:46:00 -040021|21395706https://www.engadget.com/2016/05/13/alien-sex-tapes-robot-rape-and-the-evolution-of-consent/https://www.engadget.com/2016/05/13/alien-sex-tapes-robot-rape-and-the-evolution-of-consent/https://www.engadget.com/2016/05/13/alien-sex-tapes-robot-rape-and-the-evolution-of-consent/#comments
A little over a week ago Engadget's EIC and I had dinner with a couple of friends at a Chinatown Thai restaurant in L.A. As I sipped on a Singha Slurpee, our dinner companions, Claire Evans and Jona Bechtolt of the band Yacht, gave us an off-the-record rundown of a bizarre and twisted plan for the release of their next single, I Wanna Fuck You Till I'm Dead. They'd created a One Night in Paris-style sex tape spoof with a twist: Instead of peeling off their clothes, the couple would peel back their flesh to reveal hypersexualized alien bodies.
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apologyartchildpornographycolumnconsentculturefakehoaxinternetleakmusicpoliticsprivacypublicitystuntraperevengepornrobotrobotbillofrightsrobotssecuritysexsex crimessexrobotsextsextapesextingsexualabusesexualityyachtFri, 13 May 2016 13:50:00 -040021|21376219https://www.engadget.com/2016/03/25/pranksters-scammed-nintendo-fans-with-3d-printing-and-photoshop/https://www.engadget.com/2016/03/25/pranksters-scammed-nintendo-fans-with-3d-printing-and-photoshop/https://www.engadget.com/2016/03/25/pranksters-scammed-nintendo-fans-with-3d-printing-and-photoshop/#comments

It's getting tougher and tougher to determine what's real on the Internet. Thanks to Photoshop and 3D printing you can create nearly anything. That's exactly what two pranksters did using the upcoming Nintendo NX as a subject.

Online reviews, like those on Amazon, are typically a good way to judge the quality of a product or service before you decide to part with your money. They can also be huge indicators of the reputation of the retailer you're about to do business with.

With profits on the line, some businesses have taken steps to ensure they're getting good reviews, a service which marketing companies are all too willing to provide. Last week, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed it had issued its first crackdown on the practice, after it caught UK company Total SEO & Marketing Ltd (Total SEO) posting over 800 fake reviews between 2014 and 2015.

Being one of the most identifiable names in a technology sector means that people will always want in on your turf. It's a problem that Fitbit knows all too well, since it's now dealing not just with generic clones of its devices, but counterfeit models as well. US Customs and Border Protection has revealed that it seized $35,000 worth of fake Fitbits as they arrived into Philadelphia on a shipment from Hong Kong. The devices were nabbed on January 4th, putting the stops on at least 350 people's new year's resolutions to slim down.

Nike won't have its Back to the Future 2 kicks on shelves until next year, but it looks like the folks who make their money selling knockoffs aren't waiting around. Since Nike announced the Mags with power laces will be a very limited edition available only via auction, we can expect a healthy market for fakes. Kicks On Fire points out this Instagram video by fake_education -- an account that generally points out ways to tell real shoes from their unauthorized twins -- showing a power lacing system already integrated with a pair of knockoff Mags. Of course we're sure you would never stoop so low as to intentionally buy fakes, but when Marty McFly's futuristic shoes start to surface in suspicious quantities and prices, remember this video.

Bell Canada has been handed down a $1.25 million CAD ($970,719) fine by Canada's competition bureau after its employees posted fake reviews of Bell apps. According to the regulator, the carrier "encouraged" staff members to post glowing testimonials of the MyBell Mobile and Virgin My Account apps on the App Store and Google Play. Unfortunately, these overenthusiastic write-ups neglected to mention that they were written by people on Bell's dollar. Oops.

It's no secret that luxury designers see Chinese online stores as a haven for fake goods, but they're now taking concerted action to shut down these less-than-official outlets. Kering, the parent company behind brands like Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent, is suing shopping giant Alibaba for allegedly letting counterfeiters sell their wares in the US and elsewhere. The company did nothing to shut these operations down even when told what was going on, according to the complaint. Kering had tried suing Alibaba last July, but it dropped the case in hopes of hashing out a deal -- clearly, those negotiations didn't get very far.

News of Etsy's battle against sellers pedaling knockoff goods on its site isn't a recent revelation, but an analyst report this week details the extent of the problem. Investment firm Wedbush says that up to 2 million items listed on the marketplace may be counterfeit or infringe on either a copyright or trademark -- items like these. That's around 5 percent of all goods promoted there. It's not just fashion and jewelery brands, either: products with pro sports, cartoon and comic book artwork abound on Etsy as well. The company recently went public, and as you might expect, its stock fell in response to the report. What's more, a class action lawsuit was filed against the site for making "false and misleading statements" about the counterfeit issue. Etsy took aim at questionable merchandise in the past, banning the sale of Washington Redskins items back in September. However, if it wants to continue being the go-to place for handmade goods, it'll need to do some spring cleaning.

A Littleton, Colorado, man named Jordan Mathewson was raided by a heavily armed SWAT team thanks to a false shooting and hostage report, and all the chaos was captured on a Twitch game stream (see below). During a Counter-Strike session, Jordan "Kootra" Mathewson -- a founder of The Creatures -- suddenly noticed things around him were amiss. "Uh oh. This isn't good. They're clearing rooms. What in the world, I think we're getting swatted," he says in the video. Luckily, Mathewson stayed calm throughout the ordeal and was released a short time later.

On top of invading his offices, police locked down several schools and businesses in the Littleton area. Suffice to say, the situation was extremely dangerous, and the police chief said, "We have real guns and real bullets, and there's potential there for some tragedy."

Google wants to hire the very best. Like no one ever was. If you're a Pokémon master and can meet some extreme physical fitness requirements, you might have what it takes to survive the Pokémon Challenge, a fictional Google Maps-based job application that employs an augmented reality interface. The latest version of Google Maps for smartphones now includes a built-in Pokedex, so even those who aren't seeking employment with Google can capture nearby critters.

Google is fond of video game-themed April Fools' jokes, having previously launched a faux 8-bit version of Google Maps in 2012. This year's prank is such a simple and engaging concept that you have to wonder why Nintendo hasn't attempted something similar -- and no, the stripped-down Pokémon Dream Radar doesn't count. Forcing players to scale real-world cliffs in order to capture rare Pokémon dovetails nicely with Nintendo's recently announced shift into the health sector, too. Get on it, Nintendo!

It's been a slow week. Month? Let's just say: the news hasn't been rolling in like we'd hope. So your intrepid WoW Insider staff took matters in our own hands and took a page from other news organizations. If there's no news worth telling, then we'd just make it up. Keep reading below. You won't believe what we uncovered. (That isn't true.)

Adam Holisky (@adamholisky) I'm working to get all the pets I need up level 25 to do the Celestial Tournament. Only about 12 more pets to go...